Big-box retailers such as Walmart are using facial recognition technology to identify suspected thieves, which has raised a number of privacy concerns among the public, according to a report by Fortune. Earlier this year, Walmart tested a facial recognition system that automatically scanned the face of all customers entering several of its stores across many states. The facial recognition technology matches faces against a database containing a number of alleged offenders. If a match is found, the system promptly notifies store security personnel via their mobile devices, sending a profile of the suspect and a “corporate directive” of how to respond.

Joe Rosenkrantz, CEO of FaceFirst, one company that sells facial recognition solutions to retailers, said the technology is designed to “transform security at every store.” “The system is smart enough to notify a loss prevention associate on their iPhone within seven seconds,” said Rosenkrantz, Retailers using FaceFirst do not retain photos of all individuals entering the store — only the photos of previously flagged suspects or people who resemble these suspects.

“We give them a mobile app,” says Rosenkrantz. “It makes it so they can zap someone’s face. It puts a grid on their face [for future identification]”

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